Getting More Exercise May Prevent Depression.

Getting out for a jog or bike ride can go a long way to boost your mood
and past studies had found that it helps with symptoms of depression as
well. But new research is indicating that getting your workouts may
help prevent depression all together.

“The researchers looked at 10
years’ worth of data from 2,891 women between ages 42 and 52, who filled
out questionnaires about their depressive symptoms and levels of
physical activity. They found that the women who were meeting public
health recommendations for physical activity—150 minutes a week of
moderate intensity exercise—reported fewer depressive symptoms. The more
physical activity the women said they did, the less likely they were to
have signs of depression.”

Given that older women are at higher risk
for developing depression, the study provides a potential way of
lowering the likelihood of developing the illness in this population.
“Given the high prevalence of depression,
particularly for women, exercise is still not considered a first-line
treatment option, even though exercise can be of low cost and low risk,
can be sustained indefinitely, and has additional benefits for multiple
aspects of physical health and physical function.”

The researchers hope
their findings encourage more physicians to prescribe exercise as part
of addressing depression risk.